The Right Land

Just over 20 years ago I wrote an 800 word piece called The Right Land, about a very common experience – hoping to buy a house.

The story was published, appropriately, in an Age supplement called Home and in a West Australian supplement called Habitat.

Its genesis was a failed fictional short story. (My cross-over from fiction to non-fiction was a major turning point in my writing life.)

Ten years ago I re-published the piece as the opening story to my little collection, Jacaranda Avenue.

This year I’ve learnt that the story is a part of Grade Six English classes at West Footscray Primary (where a cousin of my wife teaches). The school’s students come from all around the world. Migrants, refugees, seekers of a new life.

It’s humbling and heartening to know that a little story still resonates.